Recent advances in dentin bonding and the increased importance of esthetics in dental restorative preparations have accelerated the use of light activated resin composite materials as filling materials for both anterior and posterior restorations. However, despite improvements in materials and techniques, the placement of the resin composite remains technique sensitive and establishing firm and properly located proximal contact using resin composite filling materials particularly for posterior restorations remains difficult to achieve. If adequate contact is not achieved after matrix removal, a space will occur with the adjacent tooth. Food impaction may result in decay formation and periodontal disease. The plasticity of resin composite materials prior to the application of light radiation for curing the material makes it difficult to contour the restoration and to establish contact with adjacent teeth. In addition, it is, at present, difficult to cure composite in the deeper recesses of a dental preparation. Moreover, currently available dental devices do not make accurate contact mesially and distally to provide for adequate approximal contact during hardening and are unable to accommodate different size preparations. Commercially available devices are also unable to gauge or monitor the depth of the restoration or to assist in aligning the preparation with an adjacent tooth. For proper curing of the resin composite light must to able pass from the light curing source into the gingival floor area through the proximal box. Otherwise open margins, sensitivity and recurrent decay will develop. Accordingly, the dental device should facilitate the transmission of light into the gingival floor areas.
In our parent patent application U.S. Ser. No. 09/453046, filed on Dec. 2, 1999, the disclosure of which is herein incorporated by reference, a dental instrument of a similar nature is described except that it requires the use of a separate handle to hold the disposable light conducting insert. The device of the subject application is designed to be held in position directly on the distal end of a dental light guide which is routinely used to cure dental composite restorations. U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,405 also describes a device to position a dental light guide to cure dental composite restorations but its design does not employ a dental insert member and does not provide the ideal anatomical shape for posterior teeth nor does it provide a marginal ridge guide or an indicator to monitor the depth of the restoration to as described in this invention.
The dental device of the present invention enables light to pass deep into the proximal box and includes removable and interchangeable insert members to readily facilitate the use of the device both mesially and distally. It is adaptable for use with any size restoration by substituting different size insert members. Moreover, the insert members are disposable. Each insert member includes an indicator to monitor the depth of the restoration to the pulpal floor and to assist in alignment of the restorative preparation to the marginal ridge of an adjacent tooth.
The dental device of the present invention assists in the filling and curing of a dental restoration with light activated resin composite material(s) and comprises: a conical shaped adapter and an insert member. The adapter includes an opening for mounting a light guide at one end thereof with the opposite end having an opening to receive the insert member to establish proximal contact with restorative material in a dental preparation. The disposable insert member is removable and disposable and can be used to facilitate mesial or distal contact with the adjacent tooth.
The conical shaped adapter is wider in diameter at the end for mounting the light guide then that of the opposite end which terminates in an apex. The insert member has a shaped lower body with a lower end section which tapers downwardly for condensing restorative filling material and an upper end section which fits into the apex end of the conical adapter. The upper end section of the insert member is generally of cylindrical configuration adapted to be slidably inserted into an opening in the apex of the conical adapter. The lower end section is shaped to provide a concave surface on one side thereof and a convex surface on the opposite side and tapers downwardly to form a tip which is flat ended in cross section and of approximately rectangular geometry. The insert member further comprises indicator means to monitor the depth of the restoration to the pulpal floor and to provide alignment of the preparation relative to the height of the marginal ridge of an adjacent tooth. The insert member is preferably both removable and disposable and can be used to facilitate mesial or distal contact with the adjacent tooth.